A social network is a social structure made of nodes that are tied by one or more specific types of interdependency such as values, visions, ideas, financial exchange, friendship, kinship, etc. The nodes of the social network may represent an entity such as a user, an organization, or devices used thereby. If a first node represents a user, adjacent nodes may represent entities that are directly linked to the user. For example, adjacent nodes may be contacts of the user. The social network enables a variety of functionalities for the user such as communication services with the contacts or contacts of contacts.
The social network still relies upon a third party for connectivity. That is, conventional social networks rely on existing web-based social networks for data retrieval. This reliance requires clients of the social network to deal with many difficult legal restrictions, constant refreshing of contact data, etc. Furthermore, the social network relies upon a hosting server for setups, speeds, availabilities, etc. This reliance may cause communication delays, data blackouts, etc. The reliance on the hosting server may also result in a client being provided outdated data. For example, if a client requests data from a contact when the hosting server still has not updated the data, the client will receive data that may be impertinent, in particular when location is requested. In addition, the client of the social network are precluded from having full control regarding data access from rules imposed by the hosting server or provider for the social network. Finally, conventional social networks provide services for free. However, the hosting of the social network via the hosting server incurs costs.